Wall Street Smashes Records While Turkish Stocks Keep Surging: S&P 500 Hits New Highs, BIST 100 Jumps 2.3% in One Day
Stock markets surged on multiple fronts this week, with Wall Street hitting all-time highs and Turkish stocks posting a sharp single-day rally, as technology and oil companies lifted U.S. indexes and Turkey's central bank announced new measures to boost local equities.
The U.S. market climbed toward another record high on Friday, as companies including Apple and Estée Lauder reported stronger-than-expected profits for the start of the year [138258]. The S&P 500 rose 0.6 percent, adding to its all-time high set the day before, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 226 points [138258]. A slight drop in oil prices also helped calm markets amid limited trading due to the May Day holiday [138258]. Analysts forecast the S&P 500 could rise further, though they warned that persistent inflation, a strong U.S. dollar, and sky-high valuations could create choppy market conditions [40003].
The rally was driven largely by technology stocks, which have defied global supply chain disruptions caused by ongoing conflicts [138722]. Experts said these companies rely less on physical supply chains, attracting significant investor money even as war typically leads to higher costs and lower growth [138722].
In Turkey, the benchmark BIST 100 index jumped sharply on Monday, closing with a gain of 2.34 percent, or approximately 316.4 points [71758]. The strong performance followed a major move by the country's central bank, which announced it will provide cheaper financing to lenders who increase their purchases of domestic stocks [80220]. The policy shift is designed to directly support Turkish equities, signaling a clear shift in the bank's approach [80220].
The upward momentum continued in the following days. The BIST 100 posted strong gains at the close of Tuesday's trading, finishing up 143.73 points, a rise of more than 1 percent [128734]. It also opened higher on Thursday, gaining more than 55 points at the start of the session [8749].
Despite the overall positive trend, Turkish markets have seen sharp movements in both directions. The index dropped 20.7 points on Tuesday, mirroring declines in major international markets amid a "risk-off" environment [33252]. It also fell 30.85 points on another Tuesday session [12525]. Analysts remain focused on whether the recent gains will hold in the coming weeks [80220].